MATCH REPORT: AS London 2-0 Fisher

AS London (Park View) 2-0 Fisher
Saturday 13 July
Pre Season Friendly

Attn: 35

Fisher encountered their first reverse of their pre-season campaign as the fell to a 2-0 defeat against Thurlow Nunn side AS London in East London.
With several trialists in the match day squad, Fisher did not find the fluency of their previous pre-season games and having gone behind to two first half games never really looked like getting back on level terms despite an improved second half performance.
Fisher had the ball in the back of the net inside the first two minutes, but Thomas Ngegba was denied by a tight offside call after he rounded the keeper and tucked the ball home, when getting onto the end of Armani-Jordan Martin’s through ball.
With the hosts sitting in a low block, Fisher struggled to find sufficient width or get behind the back four and despite superiority in possession chances on goal were few and far between.
The hosts took the lead midway through the half when a defensive slip gave away a needless corner and a failure to close as the corner was worked to a free man on the edge of the box allowed him to shoot low and hard into the far corner, leaving Sam Amedu unsighted as the ball travelled through a crowded area.
A good run down the right from Tolu Junaid should have allowed Fisher a chance to equalise but there were a lack of bodies getting into the box to get on the end of his cross and a well flighted corner should have been turned home at the back post, but again a lack of bodies in the right position saw the chance come and go.
Fisher paid dearly for their failure to level the game as just before the break the hosts doubled their lead with a goal out of nothing. Hesitation in the left defensive a channel saw an AS London forward nip in between two trialists at centre back and left back as both looked to the other to deal and the grateful striker was able to lift the ball over and advancing Amedu and all turned to see the ball roll into the unguarded net.
Fisher rung the changes in the second spell, but the substitutions further affected their flow and it was only in the last half hour of the game that the looked likely to get on the scoresheet. However, by then the hosts had enough to hold onto and with former Fish, Julio Da Mata protecting their back four with a typical all action display, the goal wouldn’t come. Teddy Jones forced a good diving save from the keeper with a rasping twenty yard drive and Armani-Jordan Martin saw several jinking runs into the boxes thwarted by last ditch tackles and failure of the ball to roll kindly off deflections.
As Fisher continued to press and the host tired, the clock ticked to ninety minutes, but without a further breakthrough and the Fish had to accept defeat. Despite the scoreline there were some useful minutes in the bank for the signed players and some further learning about the trialists for the coaching staff.